Maple: The past, present, and future
by M.A.C.B.E.T.H. 313
Summary: Hi. This is my very first attempt to make a fanfic, so please, if you do have any comments, please do send them to me. It will be much appreciated. Thank you. XD - M.A.C.B.E.T.H.
1. Chapter 1

**CHAPTER 01**

A very long time ago, even before time began, there existed an endless battle between the forces of good against evil. The good forces, in the form of a giant maple tree, were pure hearted and strong in spirit and teamwork.

Guided by the Empress of the Maple Tree, lady Cygnus, together with her legendary winged guardian Shin Su, the people of the maple tree lived in harmony and thrived in the presence of one another for a long period of time. The tree was separated into five parts, the north, south, East, west and the center.

In the northern part of the tree, surrounded by Mother Nature and her children lived the Sharenian Warriors. These warriors pride themselves on their strength, living in the heart of the forests of the maple tree and surrounded by wildlife may be tiny, but they are strong when together and are able to fend off any invaders or terrible beasts that threaten the existence of their land.

In the southern part of the tree lived the archers, known for their sharp shooting and their good vision, working together to keep out any dangers form their homes and towns. Equipped with a bow and a quiver of arrows, these archers could send a storm of arrows right out of the sky even before the enemy knows what had happened, giving them an advantage over their opponents.

In the eastern part of the tree reside the wise magicians. Known for their mastery in dark magic, the magicians play a crucial role in healing their fallen allies. Located among the branches of the tree, the entire place is beautifully structured, with a peaceful ambience together with plenty of wood resources to make materials and to practice their magic on; while in the west lay the crafty thieves, specializing in the art of ambush. With two different types of thieves, firstly the bandits - masters of the daggers and finally the assassins – lord of the stars, it is amazing for them to still live together in peace and harmony. When attacked, these rouges fight by sending the first wave of bandits to deal damage to the oncoming swarm of adversaries while the second wave usually ends the entire battle when the assassins unleash their fury by striking stars and fear into the hearts of their foes.

The wisemen of these four great lands are none other than Dances with Balrog, leader of Perion and the Sharenian Warriors. Grendel the Really Old, head of the Magical Library in Ellina and the fairies inhabiting it. The Dark Lord, ringmaster of Kerning and its crafty townsfolk as well as Athena Pierce, leader of Henessys, home of the archers.

All of them were extremely strong, supposedly being the beast in that area, yet they are still as humble, constantly aiding their people in rough times or in a battle. Known for their knowledge and experience, these four wisemen are looked up to and respected as leaders of their homeland.

Finally, in the center lay the spirit of the tree, a deep dungeon where magical beasts and the empress is said to reside. Under an ancient curse, Cygnus and Shin Su is said to lay down and sleep for eternity and beyond, leaving the magical beasts to protect the abode of both of them, only to awaken when there is a great crisis that requires the four lands to work together to repel the forces of darkness.

The great beast Shin Su, cloaked in a coat of white crystal feathers used his massive, beautiful wings to enshroud and protect Cygnus should the need come. Incredibly intelligent, the people of the maple tree have ceased to know him as a beast, but regard him as an equal whom they could look up to in times of great need.

So the maple tree lived in peace back then, but alas, chaos soon reared its ugly face when the war started.

The forces of anarchy, whose bodies are nothing but empty shells of spite and hate; having no feelings except the deep hatred and jealousy that lies deep within their core. Following only their master's orders, some beasts may be weak, but together, they are an unbeatable force. Rampaging across lands, these beasts, led by the elite forces such as the three mushmoms, the balrogs and the goblin kings, they have destroyed towns and forts and rule a giant empire, all in the name of the Black Magician.

The Black Magician is a spirit devoid of kindness, patience and mercy. Heartless in battles, cruel when not, he strikes fear into everyone, even his own generals. Nemesis of the empress Cygnus, he has vowed a long time ago to find her and finish her once and for all. In his conquest, he has long travelled the harsh lands of the unknown, taking in any beasts that are willing to join his ranks, eradicating the rest off the face of history. A savage warrior, battle scars of the past still are his emblem of victory and strength when fighting his opponents.

The four great lands, each led by their wise leader, set out to vanquish the lesser beasts that dominate the lands, seemingly to be able to appear out of thin air, before attempting to wage a battle against the elite forces alone. But alas, it was not to be so. It so turns out that it was the might of these elites that keep the lesser beasts coming. If not vanquished, their problems would remain unsolved. Unfortunately, they have lost a number of brave men that volunteered to protect their homeland from harm.

Left with no other choice, the wisemen of the maple tree decided to awaken the empress from her slumber. Each contributing a valued crystal into the summoning rock created by Eurek the Alchemist, the stone suddenly glowed and vanished into nothingness.

"Has the summoning failed?" the wisemen wondered.

All was still for a few seconds.

Suddenly, with a mighty tremble, both of them have awakened! Sending a mighty roar to the skies, Shin Su stunned the advancing enemy forces. Seizing this opportunity, the people of the maple tree started their final onslaught, a fight to the finish.

Bringing forth all of their courage, the Sharenian warriors bravely fought back the iron boars and drakes near the centre of the land, led by the nefarious junior balrog. Travelling deep into the Sleepywood dungeon was an arduous journey, but the warriors managed to face off with their objective.

At the sides of the tree, the magicians worked together with the rouges, ambushing the king slime and his cronies as well as the hordes of zombie lupins thatwere infected by the power of the Black Magician's power in Ellina. The magicians were the healing essence of the entire team. Invoking upon the magical powers that they possess, the magicians heal their allies and at the same time deal severe holy damage to their undead foes as well as other elemental attacks to the rest of the incoming forces.

At the bottom of the tree, Athena Pierce led her team of archers of finish off the mushmom trio. Fighting swarms of mushrooms; be it green, orange, blue, spores or even zombie mushrooms, it was tiring, yet the archers persisted, all for the hope of seeing their homeland peaceful once more.

Deep in the centre of the tree, the magical creatures were called to Cygnus to await further orders.

"The enemy forces are approaching and we cannot hold out for much longer. We must make haste and send off as many villagers as possible for the search of a new land. I hear the tree's cries," she spoke, choking back her tears.

"The tree is dying. The aura from the invading army is too much for it to handle. The only hope left for us is to call upon the true warriors in a land far away, called Leafre. It is the only way left," she finished.

"These four celebrated heroes are none other than the ultimate warriors of the Maple World: Legor, the bow sniper; Gritto, the elemental bishop; Harmonia, the dragon warrior; and Hellin, shadower of night." Shin Su turned to speak.

"They are found in the world of Maple, and I will take those who are willing to go. It is time we found a new land to take as our home. This tree has served us long enough, but if we continue to stay on, we shall all perish. Now go! Seek those who are willing to come, and bring them here. Go!"

At this, the beasts all turned and dashed out of the enchanted forest. They were given a task to fulfill. And fulfill this task they must.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 02**

"We cannot hold on any longer! Send in the reinforcements!" roared Dances with Balrog across the landscape speckled with chaos.

Everywhere was an unbelievable sight of chaos. The junior balrog; its evil aura and power at its prime, gave a bristling roar, while the Dragon Knights, led by Dances with Balrog were using every ounce of strength to repel him; pushing him back into the edge of the tree. Only then will they stand a chance against this onslaught.

On the battlefield, many have fallen to the prowess of the enemy forces. Yet many still braved the odds, in the honor of their fallen comrades and for the protection of their homeland.

The cold eyes and cargoes were scampering around the barren floor, catching the warriors by surprise, while the taurospears and the tauromacis provided long range damage, striking down their opponents from afar; devilish grins on their faces.

One by one, the warriors did fall; and slowly did their number decrease. Yet their power never ceased to diminish. The more fallen there are, the harder they would fight, never giving up until the last breath was taken away from them. But even so were they still deadly.

A spell of protection, cast by Grendel the Really Old himself just before the great battle, made sure that if a warrior was to fall, the adversaries near the fallen warrior would be poisoned of stunned, increasing the chances of victory for the brave soldiers.

Near the end of the battlefield, where the vast unknown lies; the group of elites still had no luck in pushing the junior balrog to the edge of the tree. Even with their soul dragons by their side; filled with immense strength, they were still no match for a one-on-one against the junior balrog.

Taking full advantage of numbers, the warriors encircled the junior balrog, attacking from different directions. That way, the junior balrog was unable to defend most of the hits delivered. Yet that was not enough. They just have to keep on trying again and again. The future of their village rests on this very battle.

The same situation awaited the other three wisemen in Ellina, Henessys and Kerning. Overwhelmed by the forces of anarchy, the elite teams – with the wisemen as their leader were giving it their best shot.

In Henessys, iron arrows pierced the mushrooms that scattered the battlefield and the snails working hand in hand with the slimes to bring down the weaker forces while Athena Pierce worked together with her snipers to eradicate the mushmom trio with their hawks and strafes.

In Ellina, Grendel the Really Old was unleashing magical compositions one after another as he beat back the Lupin army, led under Haust, the leader of the Lupins infused with the power of black magic, turning him into an undead. The remaining magicians were fighting the stump races with the green mushrooms and curse eyes.

Out of nowhere, there was a flash of lightning, and there stood the Black Magician, strengthened by the magic particles in the air around him. Within minutes of intense battling, the four wisemen were defeated one by one as they were unable to cope with the combined powers of the Black Magician himself, regardless of how strong they were.

Those who remained to fight on the good side were mostly killed, but for those who escaped death by a margin, they, too, were tied up together with the four wisemen. They have lost the battle. They have failed.

Brought to a big clearing where they were surrounded by the overwhelming numbers of the enemy forces, the half-amused; half-solemn voice of the Black Magician rang out,"So… you fools actually thought that you could beat me?"

"That doesn't matter. Now, being the kind and magnanimous man that I am, I --- the great Black Magician, shall spare your unyielding lives! Not just that, you shall be granted the status as nobles and continue to lead your own people, ONLY, if you would concede defeat and acknowledge me as your true leader!" finished the Black Magician.

"Dream on, Black Magician! We will never give up our beloved homeland, not even for all of the gold in the world! Forget about negotiations, the final answer is still no!" snapped back Dances with Balrog.

"Now, let's not be hasty, shall we? You wouldn't want to anger –"A flash of crimson. Dances with Balrog lay on the ground, blood flowing freely from his legs.

"your –"the same for Grendel the Really Old.

"captor –"Athena Pierce was down.

"correct?" No exception for the Dark Lord.

"Are there any other opinions? No? Good!" finished the Black Magician. "Now let the dawn of a new era begin!" Throwing up both hands in the air, the sky began to darken. Something was happening, and whatever it was, it sure wasn't good at all.

Suddenly, in the darkening sky, a flash of light came down upon the visage of the tree, rendering such impact upon the ground that the enemies within its range were killed immediately within a blaze of flames.

Engulfed by smoke, the four wisemen could make out 5 dark figures cloaked with a special aura that even they could feel from a distance. Slowly the smoke began to clear.

"Wha - ?" the Black Magician stuttered, taken aback by the sudden turn of events.

"Go, my minions! Find out what lies beyond the cloak of smoke and destroy them! Witness the dawn of a new ruler so powerful, not even Cygnus herself can save you from this pathetic state you four are in now! NOTHING!" roared the Black Magician; his fangs gleaming with glee, claws stained with the blood of the fallen and the wisemen.

Just as the army was advancing in threatening numbers, out of nowhere, there was a sudden storm of arrows erupting from beneath the ground and in the air, catching the Black Magician's army in crossfire. The rest of the army was barraged with meteors and immense ice shards falling from the clouds above.

For the forces advancing at the back, an arrow with the pulse and force of a dragon emerged from within the smoke, pushing back the remaining forces – or what was left of them.

The wisemen of the Maple Tree were completely awed by the enshrouded figures' prowess. Turning around in shock, the Black Magician's face contorted into one of great fury. "NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!" he roared, static crackling in the air.

Immediately releasing a powerful purged beam towards the figures, there was a great explosion that shook the earth. The smoke fading away, the Black Magician rushed forward, a hint of anger etched on his face. As the smoke cleared, everyone, including the wisemen could see the Black Magician's face become surprised. Clearly lost for words, he just looked up at his surroundings, mouth agape. Moments later, everyone could see why: On the floor lay not five fallen bodies, but five pieces of wood.

Only the name of one ancient legendary skill jolted into the wisemen's memory - one which has never been completely mastered for over a thousand years: Fake.

This could only mean one thing. As five people stepped out of the woods, the tables were turned. The good forces of the Maple Tree were saved. The ultimate heroes of the Maple World, together with Alcaster, the head magician whose powers equal to the Black Magician's managed to answer the call of the Maple Empress, and they are here to help.

The magical beasts in the centre of the forests have succeeded, but only in their first task. Now, their final task lay ahead of them – saving the people of the Maple Tree.


End file.
